Russell McGregor: Online Mopologist Extraordinaire

[drumdude]

Meh. I’m over him. Angry guy saying angry things to make people feel mad, all to stroke his personal epeen. Not a good ambassador for for the church or for Jesus. But that’s plainly not the objective.

He and Robert Boylan are competing for last place in a very small race.

[Marcus]

"epeen." Oy vey! So descriptive.

I seem to recall kiwi being included in this admonition from his church, quoted in a thread titled "The Church Tells DCP, Midgley, Ostler, McGregor, Scott Lloyd and The Mopologists To Quit Posting Online":

“Social media commenters: Your church has added strong wording to its General Handbook, condemning “threatening, bullying, degrading, violent, or otherwise abusive language or images online.”

No groups or individuals are specifically named, but there is no exception for those claiming to defend The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . . . who frequently employ harsh rhetoric to attack church critics or Latter-day Saint progressives.”

https://www.sltrib.com/religion/2021/12 ... t-online/I

The thread's an interesting read. Especially this 2021 comment by a certain proprietor, which has certainly not aged well.

If others refrain from attacking my beliefs, I’ll happily spend most of my time and effort in positively advocating those beliefs. But I won’t back down if they’re assaulted.

Still, even then, my focus is not, and never has been, on the personalities of others.

[drumdude]

Coincidentally, that same Proprietor decided to create a blog post attacking another religion today:

… this article expresses quite well some of my objections to Calvinist theology: “Why Calvinism Cannot Be True And Is It Heresy?”

I’ve never forgotten a comment that John Sanders, another Protestant theologian who visited BYU a couple of times (and whom I admire on several levels), made to me and Lou Midgley over dinner one evening: “I would feel a whole lot better about Calvinism,” he remarked, “if I had ever met a Calvinist theologian who wasn’t sure that he himself was one of the Elect.”

I’d feel a whole lot better about Mormonism if they didn’t want everyone to stop calling them Mormons.

[Markk]

I have to say, one of the most classic times on the different boards I experienced, was at the "World Table," after DCP announced, paraphrasing, he would bring an army of apologists in to decimate the anti's....both he and Russell were given some of the lowest scores and both suspended by the LDS moderators for rude behavior.

[drumdude]

I have to say, one of the most classic times on the different boards I experienced, was at the "World Table," after DCP announced, paraphrasing, he would bring an army of apologists in to decimate the anti's....both he and Russell were given some of the lowest scores and both suspended by the LDS moderators for rude behavior.

I wish there existed a detailed history of all DCP and his friends’ shenanigans somewhere online. There’s just too much to remember.

[Markk]

I just googled "DCP and Army of Apologists" and found the quote I paraphrased....He and Russell were suspended in short order.

Now, that was a very long and incompetent lead up to what I’m trying to introduce; which is something I’m quite excited about, something that some of us have been involved with for a while now called “The World Table.” You can see it up here on the screen. This is a chance; I’m calling upon members of the Church to become an army of apologists, to go online as Elder Ballard has asked us to do, to bear testimony, to share videos from the Mormon video series the Church produces and other places. There are all sorts of resources we can use.

https://www.fairlatterdaysaints.org/con ... pologetics

[I Have Questions]

Coincidentally, that same Proprietor decided to create a blog post attacking another religion today:

… this article expresses quite well some of my objections to Calvinist theology: “Why Calvinism Cannot Be True And Is It Heresy?”

I’ve never forgotten a comment that John Sanders, another Protestant theologian who visited BYU a couple of times (and whom I admire on several levels), made to me and Lou Midgley over dinner one evening: “I would feel a whole lot better about Calvinism,” he remarked, “if I had ever met a Calvinist theologian who wasn’t sure that he himself was one of the Elect.”

I’d feel a whole lot better about Mormonism if they didn’t want everyone to stop calling them Mormons.

The Church still promotes the term “Mormon”

I'm a Mormon, Professional Rugby Player, and Missionary

At age 19, Will Hopoate is a professional rugby player. He will soon be a Mormon missionary and sees it as a chance to thank God for his blessings. View Will’s video portrait at www.Mormon.org/william

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/med ... y?lang=eng

Mormonism is a term defining the religious beliefs and practices of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also known as Mormons.

https://news-gu.churchofjesuschrist.org ... monism-101

[Kishkumen]

Meh. I’m over him. Angry guy saying angry things to make people feel mad, all to stroke his personal epeen. Not a good ambassador for for the church or for Jesus. But that’s plainly not the objective.

Very well put.

[Doctor Scratch]

Others may disagree here, but I think this apologist has a high degree of self-awareness. He knows exactly what he's doing, it's practiced, he's very good at it, and often -- there are exceptions where he really loses it -- his outrage is practiced an not believable. In contrast, Petersen, MIdgley, Shcryver, and most of the others rank in the top echelons of the least self-aware humans I've ever witnessed or interacted with. I've got my wires crossed. I know I should have more empathy for people being rude who don't realize they are rude vs. people who are being as rude as possible on purpose.

Like the Reverend, I’m also curious as to why you think he’s “self-aware.” I don’t necessarily disagree: he does frequently seem to be aiming for a certain effect, though he may underestimate how it come across.

All that said, I think that, in many ways, he is the “purest” Mopologist. Most of the other Mopologists take pains to make it seem as if they are nice, decent people. They try very hard to wallpaper over their rather obvious anger issues. They bottle up their actual feelings and say one thing publicando quite different things behind people’s backs.

McGregor, though? He’s just straight-up rage, with nothing held back, and the fact that he’s been semi-allowed into the In era Circle shows you how much the Inner Circle like him / relate to him. He’ll never be a full-blown Mopologist in the same vein as Petersen, Midley, or Gee, though, because he isn’t dishonest and disingenuous in the way that the Senior Tier is. If they felt that they could fully “let loose,” and that it wouldn’t get them into trouble with the Brethren, or colleagues, or the Cruise Lady, then they would be every bit as bitterly aggressive as Kiwi.

[Gadianton]

You're right, Professor, that it's straight-up bad blood without the pretense of nicey-nice.

There are several angles I could go from here. How about self-importance? Angry and verbally vindictive? Sure. But is he constantly speaking in a way where the subtext of what he's talking about is patting himself on the back and letting everyone know how smart or affluent he is? I haven't seen that. Look, let's put it this way: If these other three weren't nasty to critics, they'd still drive me up the wall.